Malcom Turner

Name: Malcolm Turner

Age: 54

Instrument: Bass

Band/Former Bands: Mad Alice. 12 years and still drama-free; I love these people!

Before Mad Alice I played with Blue Swing Shooz and before that the Kelly Richey Band. When I lived in Baltimore I played with Romance Language, Joey and the Jammers, Krackerjax, Big Cam and the Lifters, Spartan, Kid Dexter and the Thunderhawks, and Right Turn. There were a couple of others in there but it’s been more than 30 years since I’ve thought about them.

How long on instrument: I’ve been playing bass for 40 years, maybe a little more. Some friends and I decided to form a band in 9th grade and they both played guitar already. That was fine with me, because I wanted to play bass anyway. Someone had recently turned me on to The Who, and I wanted to be John Entwistle.

Equipment: With Mad Alice I use the following:

Basses: F Bass BN5, Alembic Excel (tuned ½ step down).

Rig: Boss GT-6B pedal board, Alembic F1X preamp, Mackie power amp, Bag End 2-12 cabinet.

I’m too old to drag Ampeg refrigerators around. Besides, we run everything through the PA anyway.

In my music room I have a Benevente Fretless 5, a Taylor AB-1, and old German upright bass. I use these for the occasional recording gig and for noodling around on when I’m not doing Mad Alice stuff.

Influences: For my bass playing, John Entwistle of course. Also Chris Squire, Geddy Lee, and John Paul Jones. If you are a rocker and don’t know who these guys are, check them out or trade in your bass.
Influences on my music in general are more widespread. I fell in love with classical music when I was a kid, so I have listened to a lot of Beethoven, Mozart, Mahler, Stravinsky, Shostakovich, and so many others. I also have listened to a lot of Frank Zappa, The Who, Rush, Yes, and Led Zeppelin.
All of this stuff is in my head, and it comes out in my playing.

My first gig: Because we won their Battle of the Bands, my high school group got to play for a teen sleepover at the Temple Chizuk Amuno in Baltimore. $100 split six ways. One has to start somewhere, right?

Hobbies: I like making things—cooking, woodworking, and painting/drawing. I’m not very good at painting/drawing, but it pleases me. I also like playing games—both tabletop games and on my Xbox.

Favorite movies: There are so many good movies…best of the best? The Shawshank Redemption, The Princess Bride, Jaws, Cloud Atlas, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Lord of the Rings. Ask me again next week and I’ll probably give you a different list.

Favorite food: Pizza. I’ve had love affairs with many different foods, but I always come back to pizza.

Favorite place: Inisheer. It is the smallest and most eastern of the Aran Islands in Galway Bay, Ireland. About three square miles with 250 people living on it. Someday I am going to sell all of my things, buy a small herd of sheep, and move there.

Favorite sports or team: I am not a big sports fan. I sometimes watch the football game on Thanksgiving Day after dinner. Occasionally I’ll watch a “Big Game” with friends, but I’m really more interested in the friends than the sports.

That said, I am going to answer that my favorite sport is Field Hockey. Two of my daughters play, and I go to most of the games.

What I'm listening to nowadays: The Doors, Pink Floyd, The Clash, Tomita, Rammstein, Dream Theater, Zappa, the voices inside my head, Basil Poledouris, and Osamu Kitajima. You can discover some really neat and obscure music by following the links to “related videos” on YouTube. Start with something you like, then start down the rabbit hole. After nine or ten links you can be in strange territory.

Coolest thing I've done: The project is not quite finished yet, but I have three fantastic daughters who are nearly ready to move out and do great things. I am very proud of them.

Most embarrassing moment: Back in the 80s I made the mistake of ordering a V8 juice at the dive bar where my band was playing. Halfway through the second set I puked all over the stage. Steely Dan’s “My Old School” has never been the same for me since.

Bad Habits: I chew my fingernails. They need to be short to play, but I really ought to clip them instead.

What was your first concert ever: My first rock concert was Chuck Berry at the Towson Center, 1979 or so. My parents played in the Baltimore Symphony, so I’d been attending orchestra concerts for years.

If you could meet a Rockstar ( past or present ), who would it be, and why: Neil Peart. The man is brilliant and I’d love to spend an afternoon drinking beer and talking with him about writing and about music.

Who do you love: My wife, my children, my family, my band.